Shameless

You are in big trouble

Cristian’s POV

When Faustino excused himself, Cristian felt uneasy. It was terrifying and disturbing for him to be alone with his thoughts any longer. At home, he watched TV, listened to music, or kept himself busy in ways that left no place for negative ideas.

The distractions, on the other hand, were few here. It wasn't nearly enough to keep his thoughts in check. He pondered approaching someone, anybody, for a discussion. But he didn't want to chat. He wished he could just lie back on the duvet and rest, but he was most frightened of sleep.

There are nicer areas to sleep in.

Cristian's cheeks pinched as Isaac's voice erupted in his thoughts. His eyelids squeaked shut, and he pressed his brow into his arms, attempting to drive the recent thoughts from his mind with brute force.

Please, Father, get him out of my brain!

His hands slid into his hair, fistfuls clutched. He could still feel the cool, moist towel against his skin as Isaac cleaned his face and brow with such care that he couldn't bear thinking about it.

Don't dare to do this—don't dare to alter your strategy right now.

“Babe?”

When Ashly arrived out of nowhere, Cristian yelped and leaped, her hand softly resting on his shoulders.

She laughed and scowled as she squatted on her heels next to him on the blanket. She retracted her hand and removed her shoes. She set them aside and stroked her palm up and down Cristian's back.

‘Are you all right?' She cracked a grin. “I apologize for startling you.”

“Yeah.” He groaned and coughed, then cleared his throat. After holding his hair in his hands, he ran his fingers through it to smoothen it out. His arms went to rest on his knees, his fingers intertwined loosely, and he looked absentmindedly at his hands.

Ashly moved her palm up to the back of his neck, her thumb stroking the delicate flesh at the nape. There was a time when her doing that sent delightful chills up and down his spine. He closed his eyes and willed them to reappear.

It's nothing.

“I...Ahm...” He coughed again. “I assumed you were assisting your mother.”

Ashly let out a gentle chuckle. “Some of the older females came in and pushed me out. They warned me that I needed to keep a careful check on my gorgeous fiancé before he was scooped away by someone else.”

Isaac's face appeared behind his eyes so quickly that his heartbeat stopped. He attempted to erase the memory, but it persisted with vigor.

“You don't have to be concerned about that.” He laughed, but it was a hollow chuckle.

“Well, I'm hoping not.” Ashly smiled and whispered. She kissed his face and ran her fingers through his hair at the back of his neck. “However, it may not be due to a lack of effort on the side of another woman. Who wouldn't want you for themselves?”

Another woman. Cristian let out a sigh. You don't have to be concerned about another woman.

His heart was breaking as she rested her head on his shoulders and twisted her fingers through his hair. Please accept my apologies, Ashly. You deserve more than this. There's so much more to it than what you're getting. I should have been honest with you from the start.

Tears sting his eyes, and he blinks them away hastily. He owed it to her to tell her the truth. But what if she abandons him? Have you abandoned him? He couldn't fight this alone. He was already struggling to keep his head above water. He has no one to turn to if she leaves him. He was going to drown. His parents were unaware of his condition. And he could only imagine what his father would say if he found out. They were not a source of comfort and strength. They'd never had

Cristian rested his gaze on his arms and shut his eyes. Ashly's hand continued rubbing the back of his neck. He could sense her gaze on him, her anxiety for his safety. Stop worrying about me, Ashly. Please, just don't give me so much care. I don't think I deserve all of that.

Faustino’s POV

“Dad?”

Faustino shifted his gaze away from Pastor Joaquin and Harriet Davidson, a church deacon. Isaac stood a few feet behind him, restless and if Faustino had to identify it, on edge. It was unusual for Isaac not to tell him when a lot of things is bothering him.   Granted, their father-son time has dwindled since his marriage to Lizella. Isaac didn't come around quite as frequently as he does these days. His logic tore at Faustino's heart, yet he was trapped here between tough situations in many aspects.

“Son.” When he saw Isaac, he excuse himself from the man he was talking to and walk directly in his son's direction.   Faustino put his hand on Isaac's shoulder, As they decided to rest on  a tree line's shade,  “What was the reason for your early exit?”

Isaac cleaned his mouth with his fingers and gazed at the ground, as though following in his own footsteps. “I, uh...” he said, clearing his throat, his lips pushed together in a tight line.

“I tried calling, but all I got was your voice mail.” Faustino continued.

“Where have you gone?”

A low gasp escaped from the young man's lips. “Well, I needed some fresh air so, I decided to go for a drive.”

Faustino pushed his lips against his teeth and nodded slowly, his gaze far away and contemplative. "Did anything happen to Cristian?"

Instant tightness gripped Isaac's shoulders beneath Faustino's palm, and the guy came to a halt so abruptly that Faustino went a few additional strides before realizing his son had stopped.

“What exactly do you mean?” Isaac inquired quietly. His voice stretched and pinched with stress and a sudden, powerful defensiveness. Furrow lines ran over his brow, squeezing his beautiful face and filling his eyes with wariness and doubt that surprised Faustino.

“I honestly didn't mean anything,” Faustino spoke slowly, looking at his child with a puzzled expression. “I was just wondering whether you had an argument or some sort of misunderstanding. You left immediately after checking on Cristian.”

Isaac pulled his gaze away from the tree line, but his expression remained stone, his forehead furrowed. “No.” His voice had taken on roughness and thickness that hadn't been there before. “I hardly spoke to him, just checked to see whether he was okay, and then I left.”

Faustino remembered Isaac's cautious tone from his adolescence stage. It was that skip in his tone when he'd done something he knew was bad and was attempting to get away with not having to give the entire truth without actually lying about it. He hadn't heard that in his voice in a long time. As an adult, Isaac must not have encountered anything he felt he couldn't discuss with his father, since that telltale note had almost completely disappeared.

That is, until now.

“Isaac, what have you done?”

Isaac's gaze returned to Faustino's, his purple eyelids flutter wide with surprise as if he'd been caught sneaking cookies in a jar.

“What?” The single-word inquiry blew out on a stiff exhale of air, his respiration becoming abruptly fast and irregular. Faustino raised one eyebrow gently and glanced at his son. If there was any uncertainty that Isaac was hiding something, it vanished the minute he shifted his gaze and glanced anywhere else than at his father.

“I'm not sure what you're referring to, dad.” Isaac's voice skipped once again, revealing the falsity of his denial. “I just returned to apologize for leaving.” And there it was once more. Faustino's eyes narrowed slightly as he gazed at his son's face. Isaac's eyes were far away, seemingly looking at nothing—until Faustino followed them and saw them fixed on Cristian.

Faustino's stomach clenched. As Ashly sat alongside him, Cristian sat silently, knees pulled up and face hidden in his arms. Her head was resting on his, and she appeared to be murmuring gently.

Faustino's eyes returned to Isaac's face. And what he saw reverberating from his son's eyes heightened his apprehension and pressed against his heart.

What have you gotten yourself into, my son?